The Traitor's Blade by Kevin Sands (fiction books to read .TXT) 📕

thrust in Tom’s direction. A voice, harsh and biting, cut through the fight.

“Hold!”

The sword at my neck obeyed, the edge barely slicing my skin. The new halberd stopped its advance. Tom stood ready, his grip two-handed, Eternity held low, point high.

“Drop your—” the voice commanded, but it cut off, returning with surprise. “You?”

The man who’d shouted stepped from the passage. As he came into the light, I saw his livery.

He was one of the King’s Men.

From his insignia, he was a captain. In his hand he gripped a sword, but only half ready. He was staring at Tom, who still stood in a defensive stance.

“I know you,” the captain said. Then he spoke to his comrades—four of them, King’s Men all. “This one came back with the general,” he said, meaning Lord Ashcombe. “The girl, too. What are you doing here?”

Tom was confused. He knew we weren’t supposed to tell anyone what we were doing, but he also hadn’t expected to cross swords with the King’s Men. He looked to me, uncertain.

The soldier who held me pinned still had his blade at my throat. This wasn’t the time to be cagey.

“We’re following orders from Lord Ashcombe,” I said. “We’re here by his command.”

“I very much doubt that,” the captain said.

“That’s why we’re in the cellar,” I said. “We didn’t know about… that.”

I couldn’t motion my head toward the secret passage without getting cut, but the captain understood my meaning. “What’s your name?” he said to Tom.

Tom looked at me. I nodded—carefully. “Tom Bailey.”

“Well, then, Bailey, how about you drop that sword?”

Tom’s grip tightened on the hilt, uncertain. “Let Christopher go.”

The captain considered this. Then he nodded to the man on top of me.

The King’s Man pulled his blade away, though my arms remained squashed under his knees. Tom lowered his sword, and the captain followed suit.

“On the ground,” the captain said. “Kick it to me.”

Tom hesitated, but again I nodded, and he did as commanded. The captain picked up Eternity, surprised at its brilliance.

“Well, now,” he said. “This is going to be interesting.”

The King’s Men hoisted me from the floor. I was quickly stripped of my pistols. They searched me and Tom for more weapons, taking our knives and the assassin’s dagger, then removing my apothecary sash, again with some surprise at what was inside. They didn’t put their hands on Sally, but they ordered her to sit with us, while two of the men kept watch.

The captain—name of Clemens, he said—dumped linens on the fire from the broken lantern. Fortunately, there hadn’t been much oil left, so it smothered quickly, leaving the cellar in a smoky haze. Then he turned to us.

“Tell me what you’re really doing here,” he said.

I rubbed my arms, all prickly with pins and needles. “I’m not allowed.”

“You realize we could just cut you down and dump your bodies in the park?”

I tried to keep the fear off my face. “Lord Ashcombe wouldn’t like that very much. You saw Tom and Sally with him, didn’t you?”

“Don’t mean you’re still in his good graces.”

“Then go speak to him.” My voice softened. “Please. Tell him you found Christopher Rowe doing… whatever it is you think I’m doing. What’s the harm in that?”

He thought about it. “Perkin. Off you go.”

Perkin was the man whose polearm had been chopped into pieces. He was apparently still sour about it, because his answer was surly. “I’m taking orders from children now?”

“No, you’re taking orders from me. But while you’re there, tell the general you don’t like following commands no more. See how fast he cracks your teeth.”

Perkin left. Captain Clemens regarded me curiously but didn’t ask me anything else. Instead, he spoke to Tom. “Bailey, was it? You sure know how to use this sword.”

Tom perked up, pleased. “You mean it?”

“Made short enough work of Perkin’s halberd.”

“Captain Tanner taught me that in Brighton,” Tom said proudly.

Clemens got a faraway look in his eyes. He didn’t say anything, but I could almost read his mind. Tanner was in Brighton with the general. And I’ve seen that technique before.

He turned to Sally. “And you, young miss. You all right? You took a nasty fall there.”

She shrugged. “I’ve had worse.”

“I suppose you trained with Tanner, too? Or maybe you’re a princess in disguise.”

“I’m hardly His Majesty’s daughter,” she said. “I’m just his ward.”

The captain studied her carefully. “One of us is going to be in big trouble when all this is over,” he said, “and I’m starting to think it might be me.”

He didn’t ask anything more after that, just leaned back against the shelf that had hid the secret door, lost in thought. I took the opportunity to glance past him, into the passage.

I couldn’t see much from where I sat, but I could tell it wasn’t just a tunnel. There was a small area, where the King’s Men had been waiting, lit by three lanterns hanging from rusted hooks. In the center was a table, a cup, a pair of dice, and some pennies; they’d been gambling to pass the time. Beyond that, I saw a passage stretching off to the south. No lanterns lit that corridor, so I couldn’t see too far down, but I did spot an iron door in one wall, fixed shut with three giant padlocks.

It left me burning with curiosity. What had they been doing in there?

I knew better than to ask.

It took some time for Perkin to return. When he did, he looked even more sour than before. “The general says bring them to Whitehall.”

Captain Clemens nodded. “And their weapons?”

“Says give them back.”

“I have to get my pigeon upstairs, too,” I said.

Clemens stared at me, then laughed. He was still chuckling as he handed us our things. “Come find me sometime, Bailey. We’ll spar.”

“Yes, sir,” Tom said, beaming.

The captain gave me an ironic salute as Tom collected the sacks of sugar we’d taken from the kitchen. Perkin escorted us out.

I figured we’d be taken to Lord Ashcombe’s office. Instead, Perkin brought us to